West Village Would Get Split In Two Under New Congressional Lines

WEST VILLAGE, NY — After weeks of suspense, New York lawmakers have released their plans to redraw the state's congression districts following the 2020 Census — and it appears that the West Village is about to be split in two.

Released late Sunday, the maps were drawn by Democrats in the State Senate and Assembly after New York's independent redistricting commission failed to agree on any of its own proposed maps. The new proposals are expected to easily pass the state legislature this week, and will be in effect for June's primary elections.

The most clearcut takeaway: the West Village will be split in two between the 1oth Congressional District, now represented by Jerry Nadler, and the 12th Congression District, now represented by Carolyn Maloney.

Previously, the entire neighborhood was part of the 10th District.

The addresses in the neighborhood west of Hudson Street would remain part of the 10th District, but those blocks east of Hudson Street would now be part of the 12th District.

Streets like Christopher, Perry, and Morton would run through both districts.

For those West Villagers on the east side of Hudson Street, this will surely come as a change to those who have grown accustomed to Rep. Jerry Nadler's representation over the past 30 years.

Here's a look at the current map:

The 12th District, which includes the entirety of the Upper East Side and is represented by Maloney, would come swooping into the West Village under the proposed map changes.

Calls Of Gerrymandering

In the lead-up to the 2022 elections, the newly proposed congressional lines could help the Democrats flip several seats.

"The new maps add blue areas to Republican-held districts on Long Island, New York City and upstate while cramming as many GOP voters as possible into a few solid red areas among the 26 districts that remain out of the current 27," reported City & State.

The New York Times reported that the redrawing of the lines offers Democratic candidates an advantage in 22 of the state's 26 House districts.

Other notable changes in the proposed new maps would put liberal strongholds Park Slope and Sunset Park in the same voting district as Staten Island's NY-11 - which would be a major challenge to incumbent Republican Rep. Nicole Malliotakis.

Democratic elected officials in Albany have nonetheless insisted the new lines are not politically motivated.

"With the stroke of a pen they can gain three seats and eliminate four Republican seats," Dave Wasserman, a national elections analyst and the creator of a map tool that lets you compare the proposed districts to the former, told the New York Times. "That's a pretty big shift," he added. "In fact, it's probably the biggest shift in the country."

Read More: N.Y. Democrats Could Gain 3 House Seats Under Proposed District Lines